US up bin Laden reward to $30m

The US Government is now offering $30m for information leading to the capture of Osama bin Laden.

The figure is 600 times bigger than the reward originally offered by the Bush administration.

The US is also to provide evidence which it says will show bin Laden is behind the terrorist attacks on September 11.

British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw has already said Britain has independent evidence that his terrorist organisation Al-Qaeda was involved.

Colin Powell, the US Secretary of State, says the new figure will hopefully prompt somebody in Afghanistan to give away bin Laden's whereabouts.

US evidence of bin Laden's involvement reportedly includes recorded telephone calls referring to a big attack the day before they occurred, according to the Evening Standard.

One suspect, Khalid al Midhar, was allegedly seen meeting a bin Laden aide in Malaysia last year.